Potions Professor
by Ishiphard23
Summary: Draco Malfoy hates his job. Hermione Granger loves hers. So when Draco Malfoy is offered a new profession, both their opinions on work will change.
1. Chapter 1

"Ahhhhh! I've had enough of this floo network crap!" The illuminating blonde headed wizard shouted with a large element of aggravation in his voice. "It's a load of bloody bollocks is what it is, and frankly, I couldn't give a damn about any of it!" His complaining suddenly becoming serious. His tall frame was hunched over a cluttered desk, books and odd bits of paper were scattered haphazardly about his work space. The veins in the wizards hands flexed as his long fingers gripped the desks' edge. It was as if he was channelling his previously pent up frustration into attempting to crush the dark, glossy wood with his bare hands. Usually he would be embarrassed to be caught in the vulnerable state that he was in but in this moment in time he didn't care, as the whole room of witches and wizards stared at him cautiously. The room was a communal office, filled with neatly arranged desks, which were all of the same variety and colour. The walls were a dull beige and usually the room was filled with the sound of quills scratching furiously at crisp parchment as the monotonous employees carried out their work. Not now. A silence engulfed the room and every pair of eyes looked away from their work and had their stare trained on the angry expression of their colleague.

The wizard finally looked up from his desk and violently kicked his chair from beneath him as he rose to his usual, tall height. His face was pulled into a frown, his eyebrows knitted together and the skin tone of his face was an angered red colour, contradictory to his usually pale complexion. With his shoulders drawn together he turned to stride out of the room, when something on his messy desk caught his eye, a black, wooden sign sat at the front of his desk with his name and department engraved in gold lettering on it. 'Draco Malfoy, Department of Magical Transportation'. He stared at it from what seemed, to him, like a lifetime before he picked it up in his hands and hurled it at the opposite wall. It hit it with a satisfying clatter and workers lifted their heads from ducking in attempts to avoid the sign hitting them in the face. They were wearily looking at the part of the room where the sign had hit the wall. On the floor beneath the wall, the sign had shattered in two. After studying the sign the employees turned back to face the wizard, but found that Draco Malfoy had already left the room.

Draco stared at his reflection in the dirty mirror of the Ministry of Magic's public toilet. He had recently splashed his face with cool water in an attempt to sooth the flaring red colour of his face. Water droplets ran down his skin and into his hairline, dampening his signature, almost white locks. His black tie had been loosened and now hung limply against his white work shirt. He looked into his icy grey eyes and sighed heavily. He was sick to death of hearing about how the floo network in some insignificant wizarding family's house is down and needs repairing. He didn't care that a port key had sent a traveling witch to Iceland instead of Greenland. He certainly didn't give a damn about how a Ministry Official had gotten his idiotic self trapped in one of the toilets within the toilet network used to transport workers in and out of the Ministry. He hated his job and he hated it with a passion. Three years he'd worked here, three terribly boring and similar years he'd wasted his life in an office job that didn't even come close to satisfying his ambitious hunger. Draco craved to strive in his profession and this job was putting a cap on his abilities.

Despite Draco's hate towards his job he still remained grateful that he was even working here, scratch that, he was grateful he was even sane. He was grateful to none other than Harry Potter, his school enemy and rival. Of course the title of enemy no longer applied to either of the men as Harry had been the one who had saved his arse from Azkaban after the Battle at Hogwarts which ended the wizarding war and the rein of Voldemort. Draco had been young, a teenager and was pressured by his father into joining the side of the Death Eaters, Voldemort's followers. Draco wasn't ignorant enough to deny the fact that he had wanted to join them but when he had signed up he had no idea what they were really about. Thinking back on that dark time made a nervous shiver travel up Draco's hunched spine. When Voldemort had fallen the Death Eaters were rounded up one by one and sent to Azkaban. Lucky for Draco, Harry Potter had supported him and told the whole wizarding world that Draco Malfoy wasn't evil at all, only misguided. Draco himself had never killed anyone, never harmed anyone, never done anything criminal apart from try to please his father. His mother and he narrowly escaped prison sentences whilst his twisted father is currently in an uncomfortably small cell in Azkaban, ready to rot in there until the day he dies. Not that Draco cares, his father was a bastard anyway.

Draco stopped himself thinking about his father and forced himself to deal with the issue at hand. He released his grip of the white sink basin and began pacing back and forth between the tiled wall and the toilet cubicles. Should he quit? The option was painfully tempting but something was pulling him back. What would he do if he quit? His only passions in life were playing Quidditch and reading the numerous leather bound books that he surrounded himself in at his local wizarding library. He couldn't play Quidditch professionally, he was good but not that good and he certainly couldn't read all day for a living. All these factors told him that quitting wasn't an option at all but the idea of spending the rest of his life working in this God forsaken hell hole made him heave. He couldn't do it, there was no way that he would be able to write on another form authorising the use of a port key. He had to resign. There had to be another job out there for him, he was sure that given time the perfect opportunity would arise, it had to. So without giving himself another second to contemplate his decision any further, Draco left the bathroom and headed towards his boss' office.

A small, petite, middle aged witch sat behind her desk as Draco Malfoy burst through her office door. His features were consorted in determination and his assertive voice cut her off before she even opened her mouth. "Before you scold me on knocking on your door before entering, I would like to say one thing; I don't care. And before you tell me off for being disrespectful towards a superior member of staff I would also like to say; I don't care because I quit." and with that Draco Malfoy stormed out of the room and his boss was left speechless.


	2. Chapter 2

A violent tapping sound dragged Draco out of is dreamless sleep. He hesitated opening his eyes because the dim lighting behind his eyelids told him that it must have been early morning, six a.m. maybe. So much for a lie in, he thought. Before he finally opened his eyes, he stretched his body out and felt a sharp pain making its way down his spine. Draco cringed and opened his eyes slowly. He'd fallen asleep in a very awkward, foetal position on the sofa again. This was about the third time this week that he'd fallen asleep like this. He really needed to sort himself out.

Once again Draco stretched out and sat vertically on the sofa. He rested his heavy, sleep fogged head onto his hands and rubbed his eyes. He could hear a very strong pulsing sound and figured this was the beginning of one of his common migraines. He was about to walk to the kitchen to swallow some pain relief tablets when he realised the pulsing wasn't in his head but was the sound of a small, brown barn owl tapping impatiently at the window of his living area.

He cautiously walked over to the window. He could see that the owl was carrying a letter in its beak. A letter? Draco never got letters. Draco didn't have any friends that would possibly send him a letter, only his mother. She would frequently send him money to tie him down for the month ever since he hot-headedly quit his job three months ago. But this letter looked nothing like the letters his mother send him. They were usually bulky as they were filled with galleons and the parchment used was usually an emerald green colour. This letter however was written on plain, beige coloured parchment and the seal was deep red. This looked important, official. Maybe they were going to throw him in a cell in Azkaban after all.

He shook his head of the thought and opened the window. Immediately the brown owl swooped through it and landed on the arm of the black leather armchair. Draco walked over to it and received the letter gratefully. The owl looked up at him expectantly and Draco was able to guess what it was after. "Sorry girl, I don't have anything to give you. I'm not used to receiving letters." The owl made an annoyed clicking sound with its beak and rushed back outside the open window. Draco watched it leave before he hesitantly opened the letter that was addressed to himself. What he read shocked him.

_'Dear Mr Draco Malfoy,_

_ Here at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry we have come across a slight problem. Recently our potions master, Professor Halwyn Quickly, has developed a nasty case of dragon pox and will be unable to teach here at Hogwarts for the foreseeable future. _

_ The reason I am writing to you is to enquire as to whether you would consider taking up his post until he is able to return to work. _

_ I am offering you a contract for one year and a substantial salary. You have been considered for this post because whilst you were studying here at Hogwarts you attained high grades and excelled through potions class. You are highly qualified in this field and I believe that you will help improve the grades the students here achieve. I have also been informed that that you are currently in a state of unemployment and we believe that this job will enable you to open opportunities and give you some experience. _

_ I would appreciate it greatly if you considered this offer carefully and would be thankful if you contacted myself as soon as possible as the academic year begins on September 6__th__._

_ Thank you for your time and hopefully your cooperation._

_Yours sincerely,_

_ Professor Minerva McGonagall,_

_Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.'_

It took Draco a couple of reads to fully comprehend what the letter was suggesting. From what he could understand, if he understood correctly, was that he had been asked to go back to his old school and teach. After a few minutes of complete shock, Draco came to the decision that what he was reading was a trick. There was no way he was qualified and skilled enough to teach the wizards and witches of the future. This letter must be from someone trying to play a sick prank on him. Probably someone who still held prejudice against him for being on the side of the Death Eaters during the Great Wizarding War.

Draco sighed and flipped the parchment over and scanned the scarlet seal. The seal had been stamped with a coat of arms which was exactly like the one on the letters he received when he was attending Hogwarts. This was strange, there was no way anyone would have been able to forge the detail of this coat of arms. The four animals that represent the four school houses (a lion, a badger, an eagle and a snake) were placed in each corner of the badge, surrounding a large letter 'H'. The seal looked official.

Could this actually be real? Was Minerva McGonagall really offering him a position at Hogwarts? It had to be true. Draco wanted it to be true.

Three months he'd spent sitting in his small apartment, reading books and sleeping. He hardly ever even left the building and when he did it was only to get more books from the library.

He'd tried to find a new job, he really had but his lack of interest in most things made it hard for him to commit to anything. Plus he was scared; he was scared of being judged for his past; he was scared about not being treated the same as everyone else. He guessed that's what the rest of his life would be like now anyway, he would always have the dark mark engraved on his skin, reminding him of his past mistakes.

Until now, he'd thought that no one would even consider him for anything important or a job of this worth. Teaching young witches and wizards everything he knew about potions frightened him, after all, he was a coward. What if he wasn't good enough? If he wasn't good enough, he'd be potentially ruining the education of students. He didn't want to be that person. He couldn't accept this offer.

Draco walked to the wooden cabinet in the corner of the room and stifled around in the drawer in an attempt to find a fresh quill, an ink bottle and a clean piece of parchment. Once he had found what he was looking for and sat down at the breakfast bar in the kitchen.

He began formulating his response in his head but before his quill could even touch the piece of parchment, something hit him. For once in his life someone had shown genuine faith in his abilities. He had just been informed that someone believed that he could make a positive difference to the lives of others. How could be just turn someone down when they had done the one thing he'd been craving all his life? All he'd wanted was to be shown faith. That's why joining the Death Eaters seemed like a brilliant idea at the time. The opportunity to be shown faith in by Voldemort, his father and other Death Eaters appealed to Draco. But this time Draco had been shown faith by the right type of people. This was Draco's chance to show people that he was worthy of trust and respect.

With this in mind, Draco's quill scratched away as he wrote a letter in response to the letter that had possibly saved his life.


	3. Chapter 3

"Bloody hell!" Draco Malfoy exclaimed quietly to himself. "It's still as busy as I remember then." It had been a month since Draco had received the letter offering him a position as potions master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and he was standing on the hard concrete of platform 9 and three quarters staring at the sea of excitable students and their proud family members.

Draco was carrying a large, black trunk with his full name engraved on the side in emerald green lettering. He was dressed in a black, tailored suit over the top of a dark shirt that was tight fitting and showed off his muscular torso. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone and a black cloak was clasped around his throat to shield him from the crisp weather.

As Draco tried to make his way towards the scarlet Hogwarts Express he had to push gently through a raging current of people who were bidding goodbye to their loved ones. The image before him reminded Draco of his younger years at Hogwarts when his mother would kiss him farewell as he climbed onto the train. He felt his heart pang when he thought of how he was returning to the place that held so many memories for him, most of those memories holding pain.

Draco returned to reality when a plump, motherly looking middle aged woman walked into his chest. An apologetic smile was plastered on her face when she looked up, she about to say sorry for getting in Draco's way. As soon as her eyes met his the smile fell from her lips and she immediately backed away. Draco became self-conscious and began to wonder what he had done to possibly offend this woman. After all, she was the one who bumped into him. She muttered a quick apology and scurried back the way she had come.

Draco watched after her with curiosity until he remembered something. She must have recognised him. He was, in spite of everything, an ex-Death Eater. Draco inwardly groaned. How was he even going to keep his job when it got out that an ex-Death Eater was teaching at Hogwarts? Despite the fact he had been pardoned, many parents wouldn't be happy that their children were being taught by a criminal. Draco pushed the thought to the back of his mind for the time being and boarded the Hogwarts Express.

Holding his trunk in his hand he shuffled to occupy an carriage near to the front of the train. He'd purposely come early in an attempt to sit alone in an empty carriage. He placed his trunk in the over-head compartment and turned around to shut the carriage door. He didn't want any of the students bothering him so he performed a spell that locked the door and sunk down onto a seat. His brain began to wiz as memories of this train came flooding back.

His lips formed a reminiscing smirk as he remembered the numerous arguments he'd had with the Golden Trio on this train. He recognised that he used to be cruel but he had only been a kid. He had thought he was better than everyone else and he he'd been spoilt. He was still a snobby arse but he wasn't a bully anymore.

People always say that a bully is only ever jealous, that they have issues within their own life. People couldn't be more right. Draco had been jealous of Harry Potter. He was jealous because everyone seemed to like him, because he was famous, because he had friends. Draco had always been popular, yes, but that didn't mean he was liked. The only fame he had ever received was for the wrong reasons. _'There's no such thing as bad publicity'_, what a lump of dragon dung! His run in with the middle aged witch outside the train was enough to disprove that saying.

With a sigh Draco stood from his seat and reached to his trunk. He dug around through his belongings until he came across what he was looking for. His hand emerged holding a dusty looking copy of a book titled _'The Art of Teaching for the Inexperienced by Eudora Trimble'. _A piece of spare parchment was slotted in the book, keeping track of the page Draco was on. Putting his trunk back on the over-head compartment, Draco flopped back onto the seat and stretched his legs out, trying to get comfortable. After a couple more fidgeting movements, Draco settled down and carried on reading where he'd left off. Two minutes later the train left the station.

After about thirty minutes of uncomfortable reading, Draco put down his book. He was slightly engrossed in this volume, he was good at potions but didn't have the slightest clue how to command a class room. He was beginning to read a chapter entitled '_Patience is a Virtue' _when he heard a rather loud gaggle of noises from outside his compartment. The noises were muffled because he had the door closed but the sound was irritating him and he wanted it to stop.

He looked up from his closed book and was met by a sight that scared him. Through the windows of his compartment which faced the corridor, he could see a bunch of students all dressed in their school robes. From his observations he could see that there was about five of them and they were all in Slytherin. He caught the eye of the girl standing towards the front of the group, closer to his window. He gave her his most disapproving glare he could muster, hoping this would make them go away.

To Draco's utter surprise a smirk graced her plump, pouted lips. She raised her hand and gave Draco a slight wave, wiggling her fingers, along with a seductive wink. Draco raised an eyebrow questioningly and rose from his seat.

The girls surrounding the courageous girl who'd winked at Draco started to giggle ridiculously as Draco confidently strode towards the door of his compartment. At closer inspection Draco could estimate that they were all in their last year at Hogwarts, probably aged seventeen. This made him laugh internally. They must think that he's a new student or something. He quickly unlocked the door with his wand and was hit with a cloud of sickly sweet smelling perfume. He subtly scrunched his nose at the smell. Talk about making an effort.

As soon as the door opened the girl with the pouted lips smiled sweetly at him. She pushed out her chest towards him and the girls around her stared at her with envy. She was a pretty girl but Draco could tell that she was a bitch. Her heavily mascara laden lashes fluttered at him as he smiled politely at her. Behind them were deep brown eyes that glinted with maliciousness. Her skin was dark and her hair was black, silky and splayed down her back in smooth waves. She was wearing her skirt a little higher than appropriate and a manicured finger twirled with a lock of her hair. "And how may I help you ladies?" Draco asked nonchalantly. He had no intention to play along with her little game, she was barely an adult, not to mention the fact she was now one of his students. A student and professor relationship was strictly forbidden at Hogwarts, which suited Draco just fine.

"I was just wondering if you so happened to Mr Draco Malfoy?" Her voice was husky and laced with attempted sexiness. Draco almost choked on his own saliva when he heard her speak his name. How the hell did she know who he was? "I take that response as a yes then. It's nice to meet you Draco, my name's Xanthia Fenetre. There were rumours flying around the train that a famous Malfoy was aboard." She stared at him expectantly. Draco narrowed his eyes at and smirked at her rudeness. She may know his name but she had no idea that he was here to teach, that he was now her potions master.

"Well, in usual circumstances I would have shaken your hand and said 'It's a pleasure to meet you Miss Fenetre' but since you've been disrespectful towards me, I might just shut the door." Draco reached for the handle when he felt a slim hand placed over his own.

"I'm sorry that I've offended you in any way Draco," Her voice was thick with falseness. "But I really don't know what I've done to be so rude. Would you care to enlighten me?" The seductiveness was back in her voice. Draco paused in what he was doing and turned to her. He attempted to imitate the face Severus Snape, his old potions master, would wear when he was scolding a student.

"What has offended me Miss Fenetre is that you are calling me by first name. I'm sure you wouldn't call your Defence Against the Dark Arts professor by their first name and the same rule applies to me." Xanthia looked stricken, it must have finally hit her that she was flirting, quite badly, with a teacher. Her hand shot away from his and the girls around her began to laugh. She faced them with a scowl and they immediately stopped. Draco could see who the leader was here.

Xanthia tried to regain her composure after being completely humiliated and an evil smirk fell on her face.

"Oh, I am sorry Professor Malfoy, I didn't realise you'd come back to Hogwarts to teach. I presumed that you'd come back to further your education as I didn't know they allowed ex-Death Eaters to influence the minds of young witches and wizards." Draco stiffened and he started to become angry with her. How dare she speak to him like that. He was her teacher and she had no right to insult him. Instead of raising his voice Draco counted to three.

"Oh, you are quite the comedian Miss Fenetre. Let me enlighten you on a little something. Next time you divulge private information about myself in front of your peers, I will not be as kind as I am being right now. My past has nothing to do with you, and I would appreciate it if you kept your large nose out of my business. I would really rather not take points from a house, especially my house, on the first day of term so I'm letting you off with a warning. Next time you insult me like you have done today then you'll be spending every Saturday afternoon this year, with me, in my office, serving detentions. Is that clear?" His voice was firm and commanding. Draco liked the authority of his job. It was like being a prefect, only better. The harshness in his voice, however did not have the same effect on Xanthia as he had hoped. At first she'd leaned away from him, like a coward but as he began talking about the detentions, she moved her face closer to his. He stared at her in disgust as she lowered her voice and placed a hand on his arm. As soon as she touched him Draco pushed her off but she still stayed closer than he would have liked.

"I'll be looking forward to it then Professor." She leaned back and winked at him. Draco raised an eyebrow at her and attempted to calm himself. This girl was insufferable. A shiver of disgust ran down his spine. The way she talked to him was disrespectful and even though she was only around five years younger than him, Draco felt uncomfortable with her advances. "Come on girls, let's go." She looked at Draco one last time before turning to leave. Draco sighed with relief when her back was turned and he was about to return to his carriage when he heard her shout over her shoulder. "Oh, and Professor? If you need anyone to show you around Hogwarts, you know where I am." At this she rounded and corner and was gone.

Draco slammed the door shut and stalked over to his seat. He felt humiliated. He'd tried to set her in her place but it hadn't worked. He physically shook with anger. Draco could tell that this year was going to be difficult.


	4. Chapter 4

As it turns out, as he was new, Draco was the only teacher that had travelled by train to get to Hogwarts. The Express slowed to a halt and Draco nervously closed his book and peered out the window. Hogsmeade station was exactly how he remembered it. Mouldy, brick buildings lined the platform, the trees and shrubbery were as green as ever and the glossy, red bridge stretched above the track dominatingly. As Draco studied the familiar place, the heaviness of what he was doing suddenly hit him. He was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizard's newest potion's master. That fact scared him. In a moment of panic, he was all ready to bail on McGonagall, catch the Hogwarts Express all the way back to London and spend the remainder of his days wallowing in self-pity.

He was about to lie back down on the bench and continue reading his book when an image came to his mind. This image was a memory. One of his worst memories. A memory that was terrifying enough to bring tears to his eyes. The image in his brain was of a man but not just any man. It was of the Dark Lord. A wizard who haunted his dreams every single night, even five years later. Draco remembered this scene like it was yesterday.

_ Voldemort's snake-like face was vivid and taunting as he moved so close to Draco that he could feel his ice cold breathe on his cheeks. Instead of looking furious, Voldemort looked amused. One word escaped his thin lips and attacked Draco, as if it were a sharp dagger. "Coward" the Dark Lord whispered. Over and over again he said it. The word penetrated Draco's mind as he cackled at him. "Come on Draco, just do it… She's only a muggle…. She's worthless… Killing a fly is more immoral than killing her!" Despite his coaxing words, Draco stared down at the woman's face. She was begging silently with her eyes, pleading that Draco don't do it. A single tear rolled down her blood splattered face and trailed into her dirty, blonde hair. The emotion in her eyes froze Draco to the spot. Killing her would be like selling his soul to the dementors but without killing her he would surely be killed anyway. A silent battle took place in Draco's brain and all the while his master's words become harsher. "Do Draco, prove to me that you're not the coward everyone thinks you are…. You're just a scared little boy, unable to prove himself, unable to achieve greatness… Do it Draco or you'll never be great." Once again, Draco peered down at the woman, who stared back at him, too proud to beg out loud, for the Dark Lord to hear but at the same time conveying to Draco her need to live. Suddenly Draco knew. He knew that he'd rather die than take this woman's life. Quickly he stumbled backwards until his back hit the wall with a clatter. He slid to the floor and began to cry uncontrollably. When he looked up he saw Voldemort hovering above him. "Well, well, well Draco, it turns out you're as worthless as her." He turned and looked at the woman who was curled around herself like a baby, sobs racking her body. "It would give me pleasure to kill you but I can think of a worse punishment. How humiliating would it be if every Death Eater were to find out how cowardly you are? Not even able to kill a dirty little muggle. Nothing you ever do will be good enough Draco. You're a coward!" He began laughing manically, whilst Draco's eyes stayed transfixed on the blonde muggle who was now sitting up slightly and look straight at him. Out of her peripheral vision, Draco knew she could see Voldemort walking towards her. Despite this, her eyes remained trained on Draco and refused to look at the man she knew was going to kill her. Voldemort's laughter became silent and he stared down at the woman. He bent down and caressed the back of the woman's head and Draco could see her face consort slightly in disgust. "Such a shame," Voldemort said "such a shame her blood is so filthy… I can see why you attempted to spare her life Draco. Such a pretty little thing." With that he withdrew from her body and braced his wand. Draco did not want to watch but something behind the woman's eyes, which were still holding Draco's gaze captive, compelled him to look at her. Voldemort was right. Behind the blood and terror Draco could see that she was very beautiful. Draco selfishly let a tear escape his eye and witnessed her death. Before Voldemort took her life away from her, she mouthed two words to him. As Draco stared at her and cried, she silently said the most important thing anyone had said to him in his life. "Thank you" she mouthed as she looked at him with the slightest, most bitter sweet smile Draco had ever seen in his life. The brightness of the green flash was enough to render Draco unconscious._

Something about that memory made Draco want to punch himself in the stomach. How could he be so stupid? Somebody thought he was worth it. Somebody thought that he deserved to be given a second chance. The woman in his memory was the bravest person he had ever met and he didn't even know her name. He could tell she was terrified but being brave is not about not being scared, it's about what you do in situations that scare you. That had to be the most frightening experience of her devastatingly short life and the way she handled it was inspiring. Draco could never even dream of being that brave but him being spared his life and the woman having her's taken away from her was something Draco regretted every day. How unusual it was for Draco to be so connected to a stranger that if he could go back in time, he'd have done anything to save her and be in her place. Draco owed it to her to live his life. He wanted to live his life not only for him but for her. A woman who thanked him, even if he was still a coward and a cruel boy. He didn't deserve her thanks, or to live but he wanted to thank her in return. He wanted to thank her for saving his life by just mouthing those two small words. He was going to do this by living his life. And this was going to start by him getting off the train and settling into his new position as Potions Professor.

He hurriedly stuffed his book into his trunk and lugged his belongings out onto the platform. No students were yet out onto the platform as they were most likely getting changed into their school robes. He scanned around him until his eyes met a small witch who was hastily ticking things off on a clip board. Her wand was perched precariously behind her ears and she was wearing a pair of denim dungarees and black and white striped tights. Draco raised an eyebrow at her strange muggle attire but assumed that she was a member of staff and would be able to tell him what he was supposed to do. He cautiously made his way over to her. He stopped in front of her and waited patiently for her to recognise she had company and look up at him. Apparently, she was too immersed in her check list to notice Draco so he cleared his throat in order to get her attention. When she looked up Draco was able to study her face clearly. He could tell she was around the same age as him but the dimples in her cheeks and the glint in her blue eyes made her seem as if she was immature and cheeky. She had a large amount of curly, ginger hair that was styled into two pigtails at either side of her head and a rosy red colour graced her cheeks. When she saw Draco her cheeks turned an even darker shade of red and she immediately lowered her clip board to her side. She tucked the lose strands of hair behind her head and flashed an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I do get quite distracted sometimes. How can I help you?" Her voice was cute and Draco could tell that she was always cheerful. He stuck out his hand and offered her to shake it.

"Hi, I'm Draco Malfoy. I'm the new potions teacher and to be quite honest, I'm very confused to what I'm supposed to be doing. Could you help me?" She took his hand and shook it vigorously.

"The name's Elektra Spin, Hogwarts' Game Keeper." With this she winked at Draco cheekily.

"Wait, what happened to Hagrid?" His confusion made her laugh, so he stared at her and willed her to tell him the answer to his question.

"Seriously? You thought after all that happened here five years ago, he'd want to stay? Nah, Hagrid retired almost as soon as the battle was over! Most of the other teachers did the same. Good on them, I say! I wouldn't have wanted to continue working here after all that happened. Only Minerva stayed on teaching here, which doesn't surprise me. Although I was surprised to hear that you had accepted her offer to take up old Halwyn's post, Mr Draco Malfoy." Draco looked at her as he struggled to take in all the information. She laughed at him again as she saw the puzzled expression on his face. Elektra seemed funny. At least Draco had at least one person he would possibly be able to consider as a friend in the future. He sighed and then remembered the sly comment she had made.

"Hang on, what do you mean you're surprised I accepted the offer?" By the time Draco asked her this she was peering over his shoulder at the mass of students that poured out of the train. He could see she was distracted so he tapped her expectantly on the shoulder and she looked back at him.

"What? I'm sorry Draco but you're question's going to have to wait. Important Hogwarts business to attend to." She winked at him and started to walk towards the massive huddle of students. Draco suddenly remembered that he had no clue where he was supposed to go and shouted to her.

"Hang on, Elektra! Where am I supposed to go?" She briefly turned back around and pointed to something behind Draco.

"There's a specific carriage for teachers just a little up that pathway. See you soon, Draco!" With that she turned back around and addressed the students in a very informal manner "Right you little pygmy puffs! First years follow me, the rest of you know what to do! Hop to it!" Draco chuckled to himself and began to follow the winding path that Elektra had told him to follow. As he steadily walked away from the gaggle of school children, Draco mumbled under his breathe, "What a piece of work!"


End file.
